Nick's loft
Nick Knight lives in a two-storey loft at the top of a warehouse at 101 Gateway Lane. The exterior was shot on location (though not at that specific address, which is fictional). General plan The general floor plan of the main room of the loft can be roughly described as the shape of the letter "F" without the top bar, there being an alcove in the centre of the room on the side opposite the windows. The room is functionally divided into sections, each with its own particular use: there is a kitchen and dining area, a grand piano, a studio area for painting tucked behind the stairs, a living room area facing the fireplace, and an entertainment area. Besides these, the loft has a bedroom and bathroom, and an upper-level balcony, accessed by stairways at either end. =Main Floor= Windows To the left as you face the elevator is a long wall of tall windows that dominate the room. They are fitted with vertical blinds. However, because Nick cannot bear the touch of sunlight, he has, in addition, had shutters fitted, which he can lower electronically, using a remote. If the shutters are not lowered, then light floods the room in the early morning, though in the early afternoon it has swung round enough for Nick to skirt its edges, and by late afternoon there is simply brightness outside. Nick toys with the sun to a degree that most vampires dislike; but he still cannot bear its touch. Balcony Supports Although the loft was originally built as a single large two-storey room, it has been converted into an apartment by the addition of a partial upper storey on the side of the room opposite the windows. The new walls have been painted white, in contrast to the original outer walls, which remain unpainted brick. On the elevator end of the room, the upper storey juts out beyond the these new walls, and is supported by a large pillar. The area underneath comprises the kitchen area of the room, which therefore has a lower ceiling than the loft generally. It is lit by square lighting units fitted under the balcony above. In the rest of the room, where there is no overhang, lighting comes from the various windows, and from table lamps and wall sconces. Entrance There are three ways to get up to Nick's apartment—if you are a vampire. Human visitors, of course, do not have the option of flying up to the roof and in through a window. They are limited to a choice between the freight elevator or the staircase. Elevator Most people come up in the elevator. It has a single large sliding door that opens directly onto the enormous main room of the loft. This door is rather battered in appearance—not least so because, in the series premiere, LaCroix was pinned against it by a burning beam, and went up in smoke (albeit only temporarily). As this is a freight elevator, it has an unfinished interior, with a cage ceiling. The stairway beside it appears to have a cement floor, and is painted in that dull shade of green one associates with old-style, unmodernized institutions. Although there are no windows in the stairwell directly opposite the door into the loft, there are a series of them set vertically down the building, floor by floor, providing daytime lighting. As one can see from nighttime pictures of the building, Nick normally keeps the staircase lights on at night—for human visitors, one may assume. Aside from the lights in the loft itself, these are the only windows normally lit up at night. Stairs Since most people come up by elevator, we rarely see anything of what lies behind the other door; our best glimpse came in the episode Father's Day, when a pair of assassins escaped by that route. The staircase is painted in that sort of disagreeable green associated with institutions, though it seems to be in two shades, with a darker green down the stairs themselves. There is a plain wooden bannister; and the floor seems to be concrete. Front of the Loft By the end wall, on the left as you face the elevator, Nick keeps a motorcycle - though is he never seen riding it. On the other side of the elevator door, up a few steps, is the door to the stairway, which has a small window in it. Above it is a fan. There is also an intercom and security camera that lets Nick see callers and buzz them in. Some light is provided by a small window of glass bricks, pierced through to the stairwell; and light also comes in around the fan. From the door to the far side wall, the ceiling rises a full two stories; but to the right of the door starts the half-storey upper level, braced with support beams. Under this upper level, there is illumination from lights set into its undersurface, which forms a lower ceiling over the right half of this end of the room. This is the kitchen and dining area of the loft. Kitchenette The kitchenette has a counter projecting into the room. Here there is a sink, with cupboards underneath in which Nick keeps both rat poison and coffee—a habit with which Natalie is less than thrilled. The kitchen counter extends along the wall, with open shelves above on which, among other things, Nick keeps a small number of pots and pans. Beyond the shelves, there is a gas stove, with a fan extractor unit above it. On the wall above the stove is a piece of art: a large black metal sunburst. Refrigerator Rounding the corner into the alcove, you find the refrigerator, which has a black finish. Essentially, Nick uses the fridge just to store bottled cow's blood (on the top shelf) and bags of human blood (in the lower section). Frequently he also has a piece of raw meat on a plate, since—at Natalie's behest—he is trying to learn to eat solid food. Nick is far from set up to entertain guests. In so far as there is ever food in the place, it is because Natalie has purchased it in her efforts to encourage him to act human and eat normally. Dining Area In the centre of the kitchen end of the main room, there is a dining table and chairs. Not that Nick usually bothers to set himself a place and sit down to drink his dinner in formal style. But the table can be used as a desk. Storage Room There is obviously an area behind the kitchenette, occupying the space parallel to the alcove. The use has never been specified. Beyond the kitchette, however, near the end wall, there is a white-painted louvered door. Presumably, this leads into a room that extends behind the kitchenette, under the bedroom. Probably this is used for storage, though it might be a utility room. At any rate, on the rare occasions when someone stays at Nick's place, he lets them use the bedroom and sleeps on the sofa. So it seems unlikely that this is a spare bedroom, or anything like that. Music and Art On the other side of the room from the kitchenette, Nick has a large grand piano. He often plays, sometimes for Natalie, but often just for his own pleasure. Music is very important to him: it is clear from several of his memories of his past that he has always appreciated musical talent. On the top of the piano, there are candles. Alcove behind the Stairs Two areas of the main floor of the loft have been cut off with interior walls: the room behind the kitchenette, which is for storage; and a corresponding area at the other end of the room, which is the bathroom. The space between these makes an alcove. At the top of its outer wall is a row of skylights. The alcove starts just beyond the kitchenette. Its left wall (as one looks in) is common with the storage room behind the kitchen; and has the refrigerator just around the corner. Above the refrigerator, Nick has put a framed picture. And, beyond it, there is a single, fairly large bookcase, at the near end of which Nick keeps wine glasses, handy for use when he takes a bottle of blood out of the fridge. At the far end of the alcove, against the outer brick wall, there are a pair of antique wood cabinets. But the alcove is largely used as a studio. Nick is a keen amateur painter; and there is usually an easel set up, paint and brushes laid out on a table just under the stairs, and an unfinished painting or two leaning up against the walls. Staircase and Balcony Main Staircase The inner portion of the alcove is somewhat cut off from the rest of the main room by an open staircase to the upper storey of the loft. Just above the level of the main floor, there is a landing; and the staircase turns so that someone coming downstairs finishes facing the fireplace, rather than the bathroom door. At the head of the stairs is Nick's bedroom, which is above the storage room and kitchenette. Balcony There is a railed-in walkway that runs from the bedroom round the back wall of the alcove, by rounded windows that provide upper illumination on this side of the room. There is also a skylight. It is kept somewhat open; and visiting vampires seem to find it irresistible. Not only do they frequently fly in that way; but they like to alight on the walkway to announce their arrival from above, looking down on Nick in the room below. Janette, Serena, and - above all - LaCroix have all used the walkway to demonstrate to Nick their fellow vampirity. The walkway continues round to an open area above the bathroom. This is also fenced in by the same red-painted metal railing as the rest of the balcony. At the corner, a white support column runs to the ceiling, where beams provide structural support that is exposed, since - unlike the bedroom at the other end of the loft - this upper area is not walled. It is in this open area that Nick keeps a sunbed - perversely, one might say, given that his skin cannot tolerate sunlight; but Natalie wants him to use it to try to increase his tolerance. Not, it might be added, with a great deal of success. End Staircase At the rear wall of the loft, the far wall from the entrance, the walkway ends by running downstairs. Unlike the open stairs in the painting studio, these run down along the wall itself, making a short turn only near the level of the main floor, so that someone coming downstairs steps off facing into the room near the entertainment centre. Rear of the Loft Outside of the Bathroom The outer walls of the bathroom area are fairly plain, being used by Nick for small shelves that hold vases and other art, illuminated with little lights. Entertainment Area However, along the end wall of the main room, against the stairs running down from the walkway, he has a fairly large bookcase. As well as books, though, this entertainment section has CD stacks and videotapes; and there is a stereo system. To the right of the shelves holding these, there is a widescreen television set. Set opposite, for easy viewing of the TV, Nick has set a well-padded leather armchair. Above, one can see the railing for the walkway and stairs, which come down to the main floor most of the way along the end wall, not far from the long outer wall with the windows. Middle of the Loft Sitting Room Area Fireplace =Bedroom= =Bathroom= =See also= *Nick's Art Category:Sets